The Power of Character in Organizations
Many leaders fail to recognize the River of Character running through their organizations. Leaders who use a values-based approach create a positive culture through which employees achieve results (Grojean, Resick, Dickson, & Smith, 20043). This culture depends on critical core values such as trust and caring, where people feel safe to express their ideas, confront the brutal facts while respecting others' views, and build relationships for collaboration that leads to better solutions.
Clear, core values are simply one of several key attributes of high-performing character-based organizations. Values play a central role in organizational success because values determine the people who are hired, the customers the company serves, and the suppliers upon whom the company depends.
High-performing, character-based organizations achieve positive organizational results and outcomes such as:
- Higher employee satisfaction and loyalty resulting in higher retention of knowledge about the business, customers, and operating environment
- Higher performance and higher levels of individual and team energy because employees at all levels are motivated to achieve, contribute, and learn more as the company grows
- Higher productivity for lower costs and greater efficiencies
- Service excellence that leads to customer satisfaction and loyalty, which drives growth, profitability, and sustainability
The power of character in organizational performance cannot be denied.
- See Grojean, M. W., Resick, C. J., Dickson, M. W., & Smith, D. B. (2004). Leaders, values, and organizational climate: Examining leadership strategies for establishing an organizational climate regarding ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 55(3), 223-241. ↑